The Poudre Valley REA Community Solar Farm is the first community solar farm in Northern Colorado and allows members of the electric cooperative to purchase individual solar panels within the solar farm to offset their electric use. Phase 1 of the solar farm was sold-out before the project's completion.

Attending will be the PVREA Board of Directors, Clean Energy Collective CEO Paul Spencer, and PVREA members who have reserved the panels in the solar farm. Many government officials are also expected to attend, including representatives of the Governor's office.

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The Poudre Valley REA Community Solar Farm will provide clean energy to PVREA members through community solar, a new model of renewable energy production. Community solar allows community members to purchase solar panels located in centralized solar arrays to offset their electricity use. The Poudre Valley REA Community Solar Farm is being administered by the Clean Energy Collective (CEC), which pioneered the community solar model nationally.

PVREA members get all of the financial and environmental benefits of using solar power without having to install anything on their roof and get credits applied directly to their PVREA bill. Community solar allows all consumers to utilize clean renewable energy, including renters, those with poorly sighted properties and individuals of all income levels, without having to build a costly system of their own. CEC warranties the panels for 50 years, so consumers never have to worry about construction, maintenance or repair.

The Solar Farm at PVREA's Windsor Headquarters will encompass more than 400 solar panels generating 115 kilowatts (kW) of electricity. All of the solar panels in this first phase are already reserved by PVREA members.

The construction of the Poudre Valley REA Community Solar Farm is being handled by local EPC contractor Martifer Solar USA. www.martifersolarusa.com

"We are committed to economically incorporating renewable energy initiatives and seeking ways for our consumers to benefit from a more diverse energy portfolio," said Poudre Valley REA CEO Brad Gaskill. "Clean Energy Collective provided a turn-key solution that we can easily integrate and will be attractive for our consumers."

"Never before has the opportunity to use clean solar energy been available to so many people so easily. The fact that this project sold out before it was even completed shows that Colorado and Poudre Valley REA's members are committed to using locally-produced renewable energy," says Paul Spencer, founder and CEO of Clean Energy Collective. "The enthusiasm of PVREA members has been overwhelming."

About PVREAPoudre Valley Rural Electric Association is a member-owned, not-for-profit electric distribution cooperative serving more than 35,000 consumers in Boulder, Larimer and Weld Counties in Northern Colorado. PVREA has 113 consumers with small renewable energy projects and over 650 PVREA consumers already participate in the utility's Green Power program. In 2011 they purchased more than 24 million kilowatts of electricity from renewable sources.

About CECColorado-based Clean Energy Collective is a developer of community-based renewable energy facilities and a leader in community power generation. CEC has pioneered the model of delivering clean power-generation through large-scale facilities that are collectively owned by participating utility customers. The CEC's proprietary RemoteMeter® system automatically calculates monthly credits and integrates with existing utility billing systems, enabling all utility customers to easily have clean, renewable power credited directly on their monthly utility bills, without modifying their home or office.